The National Tourism Indicators (NTI) portray the evolution of tourism in Canada on a quarterly basis. These bottom-line figures officially represent the most current results on the significance of tourism in the Canadian economy and form the basis to measure its progress. They constitute a set of statistics that provide historical and current quarterly analysis of tourism, covering tourism commodity supply and demand, employment and prices.
Statistics Canada released on June 30, 2003
National Tourism Indicators
First Quarter 2003.
Adjusted for seasonality and inflation and expressed in 1997 constant dollars (compared to the preceding quarter):
- Total real tourism spending reached $11.8 billion in the first quarter of 2003, a drop of 0.8% over the fourth quarter of 2002.
- Overall spending on many tourism commodities fell in the first quarter: passenger rail transport (down 2.2%), passenger air transportation (down 1.9%), food and beverage services (down 1.9%), and accommodation (down 1.2%).
- Real spending by Canadian residents in Canada amounted to $7.9 billion, up 1% from the previous quarter. Domestic tourism expenditures constituted 67.1% of total tourism spending in Canada during the quarter, the largest share since the fourth quarter of 1997.
- Foreign spending in the first quarter 2003 decreased by 4.5% over the previous quarter, reaching $3.8 billion.
- Total tourism employment reached 586,100 full and part-time jobs, flat from the previous quarter.
Unadjusted for seasonality and expressed in current prices (compared to the preceding year):
- Total tourism expenditures reached $10.4 billion, an increase of 6.0% over the same quarter of 2002.
- Major increases in spending were registered in vehicle fuel (up 23.4%) and passenger air transport (up 11.6%).
- Spending by Canadians travelling in Canada reached $7.7 billion, up 10.1%.
- Foreign spending reached $2.7 billion, down 4.4%.
- Total tourism employment reached 562,800 full and part-time jobs, up 2.5% from the same quarter of 2002.
